Bend man killed in 3-vehicle crash on snowy Highway 97 south of Redmond
I(Update: Details of Hwy. 20 crash; 3 people injured, 2 seriously; 1 of 3 dogs killed)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A Bend man was killed in a three-vehicle crash Thursday morning on Highway 97 south of Redmond when a Redmond man lost control on the snowy roadway and spun into the oncoming lanes, Oregon State Police reported. It was one of numerous crashes around the region.
Troopers and other first responders were called around 6:50 a.m. to the crash on Highway 97 near milepost 125, about four miles south of Redmond.
A preliminary investigation found that a 32-year-old Redmond man lost control of his southbound SUV on the slick roadway and spun into the northbound lanes, where it was struck broadside by a car driven by Christopher May, 44, of Bend, troopers said.
May’s car then was struck by a northbound pickup truck driven by a 46-year-old Bend man, they said.
The SUV driver was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, according to OSP, while the pickup driver was uninjured. May sustained fatal injuries in the crash, which closed lanes of the highway for up to four hours.
OSP was assisted at the crash scene by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Redmond Fire and Rescue and ODOT.
Another serious-injury crash occurred around 1 p.m. on U.S. Highway 20E near milepost 13, about 13 miles east of Bend, closing the highway for about two hours.
OSP said an investigation of the two-vehicle crash found that Joshua Hart, 32, of Bend, was driving a Ford pickup heading west when for unknown reasons he "abruptly stopped and slid into the eastbound lane," striking a GMC pickup towing a 35-foot gooseneck trailer.
The Ford pickup rolled and came to rest in the middle of the highway, with both Hart and a passenger thrown from the truck. Hart and the passenger were taken to St. Charles Bend with serious injuries; the GMC driver also was injured and taken to the hospital.
An adult dog in the Ford pickup died in the crash, but two puppies survived, troopers said.
Many roads were snow-covered as the latest surge of a spring storm brought more widespread snow across the region early Thursday, again prompting several crashes, before things warmed up and skies cleared later in the morning.
The latest snowstorm crossing the state also again closed Interstate 84 in northeast Oregon for a time Thursday morning between Exit 216 east of Pendleton and Exit 302 near Baker City, ODOT reported. The eastbound lanes reopened by mid-morning and the westbound lanes a short time later.
